Bust of Napoleon I

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This bust of Napoleon I (1769-1821) is from a model by French sculptor Antoine-Denis Chaudet (1763-1810). Chaudet worked in Neoclassical style, imitating Roman imperial portraits with the 'herm' form of this bust. The shoulders are cut off and straight sides reflect that of Roman emperors. Chaudet made the original plaster model for the portrait in 1799. The final marble version of 1804 was Napoleon's preferred image after being created Emperor of the French, making it an official portrait widely reproduced. From 1805, biscuit (hard) porcelain versions of this bust were made in three sizes at the Sèvres factory in France. Italy was under Napoleonic rule when Napoleon presented his sister Elisa Baciocchi with the principality of Lucca and Massa-Carrara, where Carrara marble was extracted. She ordered multiple copies of Chaudet's bust to be carved by the workshops between 1807 and 1809, producing no less than 1,200 marble versions. This example is probably one of these official portraits originally made for public buildings in France. The majority were destroyed when the Bourbon monarchy was restored in 1814. Napoleon created a link between contemporary France and great civilizations of the past with his military conquests, bringing important works of art into French collections and emphasizing his position as inheritor of European tradition. The Empire style he promoted adapted Imperial Rome's symbols and ornament. This portrait imitates that of a Roman emperor, at the heart of Napoleonic Europe. "What is a throne, a bit of gilded wood covered in velvet? No, a throne is a man, and I am that man." - Napoleon, 1814. Gallery location: Europe 1600-1815, Room 1, case EXP, shelf By CA6. Courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.